The Fight Brief

Tommy McMillenW vs. Alberto Montes

UFC Fight Night · July 18, 2026 · Paycom Center · Main Card 8:00 PM ET

The lineTommy McMillen -175Alberto Montes +145DraftKings

The result

Tommy McMillen def. Alberto Montes TKO (punches), R3 3:29

The pre-fight fear was McMillen handing his neck to the anaconda-choke specialist; instead he fought disciplined and simply wore Montes down. Relentless forward pressure and accumulating body shots drained Montes over three rounds until McMillen's punches forced the stoppage at 3:29 of the third — the deepest into a fight he's ever gone, and it still ended with a finish and a Performance of the Night bonus. He's 11-0.

The breakdown below was written before the fight.

What kind of fight is this?

Scramble roulette — finish likelihood: very high

Twenty-one combined finishes in twenty-two combined wins — this is not going to the judges. If McMillen keeps it a kickboxing match, his size and output break Montes late in round one or two. But the first sloppy shot or panicked wrestling exchange puts his neck in the guillotine factory. Slight lean to McMillen's physicality; zero surprise if Montes wins his third straight by anaconda choke.

The matchup

Tommy McMillen
Scramble Finisher
3x Montana state wrestling champion · 9 first-round finishes · Wild pace
GrapplingStriking
Alberto Montes
Front-Headlock Assassin
Anaconda-choke specialist · 7 submission wins · Accurate hands
GrapplingStriking

A genuinely dangerous style collision: McMillen's whole game is chaotic scrambles and front-headlock chokes of his own — against the one opponent on the card you absolutely cannot give your neck to. Every wild McMillen level change or guillotine attempt is a potential anaconda entry for Montes, who has made a career of punishing exactly that positional greed. The counter-case: McMillen is bigger, five inches taller, younger, and throws double the volume, and Montes absorbs 4.44 strikes a minute — enough leak to get cracked in a firefight.

Tale of the tape

10-0Record12-1
28Age32
6'0"Height5'7"
74"Reach69"
OrthodoxStanceOrthodox
United StatesCountryVenezuela
Red Hawk Academy (Arizona)TeamGoat Shed Academy (Miami)

The numbers

Career UFC averages. Red bar = statistical edge.

Tommy McMillenAlberto Montes
9.87Sig. strikes landed / min (volume)5.26
53%Striking accuracy (precision)61%
5.54Sig. strikes absorbed / min (lower is better)4.44
58%Striking defense (strikes avoided)60%
0Takedowns / 15 min (wrestling offense)0
Takedown accuracy
83%Takedown defense78%
0Submission attempts / 15 min6.77

The fighters

Tommy McMillen 10-0

Gun

Undefeated at 10-0 with nine first-round finishes — a three-time Montana state champion wrestler who now trains next to Sean O'Malley at Red Hawk Academy. His UFC debut in April was pure him: a firefight at nearly ten significant strikes landed per minute, ended by first-round TKO of Manolo Zecchini and a $100K bonus check. Fights like the round is always about to end.

How they win
4 KO/TKO5 SUB1 DEC
How they lose

Has never lost.

Last 3 fights
  • WManolo Zecchini · KO/TKO, R1 3:57UFC Fight Night: Moicano vs. Duncan · April 4, 2026
  • WDavid Mgoyan · Decision (majority)Dana White's Contender Series S9 · September 2, 2025
  • WDumar Roa · Submission (rear-naked choke), R1 1:58RUF 62 · April 26, 2025

Alberto Montes 12-1

The Promise

A Venezuelan out of Miami's Goat Shed whose front-headlock series is basically a signature move at this point — his last three wins are two anaconda chokes and a D'Arce. Submitted Ricky Turcios 40 seconds into round two of his UFC debut for a Performance of the Night bonus. Seven of twelve wins by submission, an accurate striker (61%) when he needs to be, and unbeaten since 2021.

How they win
1 KO/TKO7 SUB4 DEC
How they lose
1 KO/TKO0 SUB0 DEC
Last 3 fights
  • WRicky Turcios · Submission (anaconda choke), R2 0:40UFC 326 · March 7, 2026
  • WCarlos Calderon · Submission (anaconda choke)Dana White's Contender Series S8 · October 1, 2024
  • WKevin Garcia · Submission (D'Arce choke)Combate Global · June 22, 2024